MLB Player News

Altuve went 2-for-4 with a three-run home run in Sunday's 5-3 win over the Angels.

Altuve's third-inning homer, his fifth of the season, shifted the momentum in the game after the Angels jumped out to a 2-0 lead. The homer also atoned for him getting picked off first base in the first inning with Carlos Correa at the plate. A perennial MVP candidate, he's hitting a blistering .419 on the road this season compared to .236 at home, though those numbers should balance out as the season wears on. The Astros are off Monday and return to Houston for a quick two-game set against the Braves.

Motter went 2-for-4 with an RBI double, another two-bagger and a run in Saturday's 8-2 win over the Rangers.

After a hot start that had his average sitting at .321 on April 17, Motter had hit the skids at the plate, hitting safely in just seven of his subsequent 43 at-bats coming into Saturday. His effort against the Rangers represented his first multi-hit game since April 26, which also marked the date of his last extra-base hit. Despite the recent struggles, Motter offers tremendous defensive versatility. However, rookie Ben Gamel, who can back up all three outfield positions in his own right, could conceivably endanger Motter's roster spot if he's able to sustain his current surge while Mitch Haniger (oblique) remains out.

Altuve is out of Saturday's lineup against the Angels.

Altuve will get the day off on h is 27th birthday. He is hitting .297/.373/.450 with four home runs and nine steals in 126 plate appearances this season. Marwin Gonzalez will get the start at second base and hit seventh against righty JC Ramirez.

Espinosa is out of Saturday's lineup against the Astros.

He is in a brutal 2-for-44 (.045 average) funk at the plate, so he will get his third day off in the last nine games. Cliff Pennington is starting at second base and hitting eighth against righty Lance McCullers.

Andrus went 3-for-6 with a double, RBI and stolen base in Friday's 3-1 win over the Mariners in 13 innings.

Andrus recorded almost half of the Rangers' seven hits on the evening and continues to justify manager Jeff Banister's decision to deploy him in the cleanup spot. Though the shortstop has been regarded as a speed merchant for most of his career and still paces the team with six steals on the season, it's his growth as a power hitter that has really sent his fantasy value on an upward trajectory. His .504 slugging percentage is a career-best mark and trails only Joey Gallo among regulars in the Rangers lineup.

Andrus went 2-for-5 with a solo homer and two runs scored in Thursday's 10-4 win over the Rangers.

Following a 12-game stretch where he failed to deliver an extra-base hit, Andrus has started tapping back into the power he displayed in the first two weeks of the season. He's now compiled a pair of doubles and homers to go with four walks over his last seven games, boosting his OPS to a career-best .823 mark. If Andrus is able to maintain his power gains to go along with his typically steady batting average and skills as a base stealer, he could finish as a top-10 fantasy shortstop in most leagues.

Espinosa is not in the lineup against the Mariners, Bob Dutton of The Tacoma News Tribune reports.

This marks the second time in a week Espinosa will sit out. He has slumped badly to begin the season, hitting just .160 with a .511 OPS. Cliff Pennington will hit eighth and play second Wednesday.

Polanco is out of Wednesday's lineup against the A's.

This will be his fourth game off in the past 13 contests, and he is hitting just .176 with no home runs over that stretch. He will make way for Eduardo Escobar, who is hitting seventh and manning shortstop against righty Kendall Graveman.

Andrus went 2-for-3 with a double, a walk and an RBI in Monday's 6-2 loss to the Astros.

With three two-hit games in his last five starts, Andrus is starting to heat up again, but it hasn't resulted in a permanent move up the lineup just yet. Though the slumping Nomar Mazara was dropped from the No. 3 spot in the order to the eighth, it was on-base machine Shin-Soo Choo who instead received the appointment to the upper third of the lineup. Andrus has drawn walks in back-to-back games, but since he still only has a 4.9 percent walk rate for the season, he may need to scale back his free-swinging ways before manager Jeff Banister is convinced the shortstop is worthy of a more prominent lineup spot.

Merrifield is out of the lineup Monday against the White Sox, Jeffrey Flanagan of MLB.com reports.

Merrifield displaced the struggling Raul Mondesi as the Royals' primary second baseman in mid-April, but he's been unable to provide the team's hapless offense with much of a spark. The 28-year-old is slashing .229/.308/.457 since his promotion to the big club, but with no better alternatives seeming to be in sight, he should still have decent job security. Christian Colon will spell Merrifield at the keystone Monday, however.